Pages

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Deck the Halls - Christmas Geneameme

My Genimate, Pauleen Cass, of the Cassmob blog issued an invitation to genealogists to respond to her Geneameme.

I am a little late in submitting my response but Pauleen had offered to add links to latecomers' posts to her list of posts here. The posts from many corners of the world make for interesting reading and certainly help to engender the Christmas Spirit.

Thanks, Pauleen, for giving us an opportunity to take up your challenge.

THE 2012 CHRISTMAS GENEAMEME

Do you have any special Xmas traditions in your family? There is usually a game of backyard cricket happening some time during the day. Apart from this most traditions centre around food.

Is church attendance an important part of your Christmas celebrations and do you go the evening before or on Xmas Day? Since we moved to our present home we haven't gone to Church each year. If we do we go it is to a midnight service at the church we consider to be our family church.

Did/do you or your children/grandchildren believe in Santa? I have 11 grandchildren and so far only one (Miss 11) has doubts. As for me I still believe - Santa left me something every year until I left home to be married but he hasn't been able to find me since then.

Do you go carolling in your neighbourhood? No, for two reasons. Firstly we live on an acreage and it's a long walk between houses; secondly I have a great voice which has a rough passage out so the neighbours might not appreciate my singing.

What’s your favourite Christmas music? Can't choose a favourite. I love Christmas music and each year I buy at least one Christmas CD to add to my collection. The family groan when in the lead up to and on Christmas Day I play all of my CDs in rotation; I have all sorts from The Wiggles to The Choir of Kings College Cambridge.This year my purchase is a new Rod Stewart Christmas CD. I guess that's a tradition!

What’s your favourite Christmas carol? Once again it's hard to choose, I tend to prefer the old faves like Silent Night, Adeste Fideles, O come all ye faithful.....

Do you have a special Xmas movie/book you like to watch/read? We watch the Christmas Carols from Melbourne every Christmas Eve (another tradition?). I have a soft spot for Dickens' A Christmas Carol but don't read it every year. Bah Humbug!

Does your family do individual gifts, gifts for littlies only, Secret Santa (aka Kris Kringle)? We give gifts to everyone while the younger generation has a Kris Kringle and the littlies are overwhelmed with gifts from all,

Is your main Christmas meal indoors or outdoors, at home or away? Indoors where there is air conditioning - we'd melt outside.

What do you eat as your main course for the Christmas meal? It's a traditional English Christmas meal for us as outlined in my post from 2010.

Does Christmas pudding feature on the Xmas menu? Is it your recipe or one you inherited? Yes, we have plum pudding. I used to cook one in a cloth using The Australian Women's Weekly cookbook recipe.but for a few years now have bought one from David Jones.

Do you have any other special Christmas foods? What are they? Nuts, rum balls, white Christmas, scorched almonds, chocolates.

Do you give home-made food/craft for gifts at Christmas? I have made many batches of shortbread and given them as presents, I've also made a few Christmas cakes for presents but now that I am old and lazy I don't do this any more.

Do you return to your family for Xmas or vice versa? Four generations gather at our home each Christmas.

Is your Christmas celebrated differently from your childhood ones? If yes, how does it differ? Not really. Our Christmas is family oriented as were the Christmases of my childhood. The major difference is that now I'm one of the oldies and the children are my grandchildren.

How do you celebrate Xmas with your friends? Lunch? Pre-Xmas outings? Drop-ins? Aussie Barbies (barbeques) are top of the pops for our socialising.

Do you decorate your house with lights? A little or a lot? A Little. The lights on our veranda stay up all year and get turned on for Christmas and other celebrations.

Is your neighbourhood a “Xmas lights” tour venue? You can't even see most of the homes from the street so our area isn't suitable for a lights extravaganza.

Have any of your Christmases been spent camping (unlikely for our northern-hemisphere friends)? No way, the only stars I'll be sleeping under are 5 stars as in Hilton, Intercontinental, Sheraton etc.

Is Christmas spent at your home, with family or at a holiday venue? Always at home surrounded by family. I would like to experience a white Christmas one year.

Do you have snow for Christmas where you live? The only snow we have is on some of our Christmas ornaments.

Do you have a Christmas tree every year? Without fail.

Is your Christmas tree a live tree (potted/harvested) or an imitation? We have an imitation tree. We had a large one for around 25 years but a few years ago I retired this in favour of a smaller one. Both have been realistic looking ones.

Do you have special Xmas tree decorations? Our decorations aren't fashionable or designer items. Our collection has been gathered over many years and includes some handmade ones done by our now adult children.

Which is more important to your family, Christmas or Thanksgiving? What's Thanksgiving?